1 Corinthians 14:15

1 Corinthians 14:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also.
• New International Version (NIV)So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding.
• English Standard Version (ESV)What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.
• New King James Version (NKJV)What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.

Context of 1 Corinthians 14:15

13So, if you speak a message in a different language, you should pray to God about it. Pray that you may be able to explain to people what the message means. 14If I pray in a different language, only my spirit is praying. But I do not use my mind while I pray like that. This is what I should do: I will not only pray with my spirit. I will also pray with my mind. I will sing to praise God with my spirit. And I will also do that with my mind. 16If you are praising God only with your spirit, not everyone will understand. Believers who have not learned these things will not know what you are saying. They cannot agree and say ‘Amen’. 17You may really be able to thank God very well in your spirit. But your words do not help those other believers to become strong.

1 Corinthians 14:15 word by word

τί οὖν ἐστιν; προσεύξομαι τῷ πνεύματι, προσεύξομαι δὲ καὶ τῷ νοΐ· ψαλῶ τῷ πνεύματι, ψαλῶ δὲ καὶ τῷ νοΐ.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Whatτίςtis · which?G5101
• is itεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• thenοὖνoun · therefore/thenG3767
• I will prayπροσεύχομαιproseuchomai · to prayG4336
• with the spiritὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• with the spiritπνεῦμαpneuma · spirit/breath: spiritG4151
• andδέde · thenG1161
• with the understandingνοῦςnous · mindG3563
• alsoκαίkai · andG2532
• I will singψάλλωpsallō · to sing praiseG5567

Cross-references for 1 Corinthians 14:15

• 1 Corinthians 10:19So think about food that people offer to idols as a sacrifice. I am not saying that the idols are real gods. The food that people offer to them is not special food.
• Romans 3:5Maybe some people may say, ‘The wrong things that we do show more clearly that God is always right. So perhaps God is wrong to punish us.’
• Romans 8:31So, because of all the things that God does for us, we can say this: If God is working on our behalf, nobody can really do anything against us.
• Philippians 1:18But it does not matter to me! All of them are telling people about Christ. That is the most important thing. Whether they speak because of wrong reasons or because of right reasons, they are speaking the message about Christ! Because of that, I am happy. Yes, I will continue to be happy.
• 1 Corinthians 14:19But when the church meets together, I want to help other believers and teach them. So I would rather say five words that people understand than thousands of words in a different language.
• John 4:23But people will soon have a new way to worship the Father. Yes, that time has already come. Those people who really want to worship the Father will worship him in their spirits, in a true way. The Father looks for people who will worship him like that.
• Romans 1:9God is the one that I serve with all my spirit. I tell people the message about his Son, which is good news. God himself knows that I pray for you all the time.
• Ephesians 5:17Do not live like fools. But instead, understand what the Lord wants you to do.
• Ephesians 6:18As you stand strongly like that, always pray for God's help. Pray about everything as God's Spirit helps you to pray. For this purpose, watch carefully all the time. Also, continue to pray for all God's people everywhere.
• Colossians 3:16Let Christ's message always be in your thoughts, with all the good things that it brings. Use that message to teach and to warn each other. Be very wise as you do that. And also sing all kinds of spiritual songs to praise God. Sing psalms and Christian songs. As you sing, thank God from inside yourselves.
• Jude 1:20But you, my friends, have believed the message that comes from God himself. So you must help one another to trust God more and more. Pray to God with the help of the Holy Spirit.
• Psalms 47:7God is the King who rules over the whole earth! So sing a special song to praise him!
• Romans 12:1My Christian friends, God has been very kind to us. Because of that, I really want you to serve God with your whole life. Offer your bodies to him like a sacrifice that continues to live. Serve him with everything that you have and that will please him. That is the true way to worship God.

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 14:15

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15What is it then? - What shall I do? What is the proper course for me to pursue? What is my practice and my desire; see the same form of expression in Romans 3:9, and Romans 6:15. It indicates the “conclusion” to which the reasoning had conducted him, or the course which he would pursue in view of all the circumstances of the case. I will pray with the spirit … - I will endeavor to “blend” all the advantages which can be derived from prayer; I will “unite”…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-25Verses 15-25 There can be no assent to prayers that are not understood. A truly Christian minister will seek much more to do spiritual good to men's souls, than to get the greatest applause to himself. This is proving himself the servant of Christ. Children are apt to be struck with novelty; but do not act like them. Christians should be like children, void of guile and malice; yet they should not be unskilful as to the word of righteousness, but only as…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15-17It is better to worship with both spirit and understandable words. Public worship should bless God and others. Speaking in tongues without interpretation glorifies God and helps the speaker (14:4), but it does not help others present. say “Amen” to your thanksgiving: Amen was the traditional response to a prayer.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1515. What is it then?--What is my determination thereupon? and--rather as Greek, "but"; I will not only pray with my spirit, which (1Co 14:14) might leave the understanding unedified, BUT with the understanding also [Alford and Ellicott]. pray with the understanding also--and, by inference, I will keep silence altogether if I cannot pray with the understanding (so as to make myself understood by others). A prescient warning, mutatis mutandis, against the…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Corinthians 14:15

• Interpretation
• Language
• Music
• Praise
• Prayer
• Preaching
• Tongues (the Gift)
• Worship

In the dictionaries

• Confusion
• Desire
• Edification
• Except
• Pipe
• Profit
• Tongues, Gift of
• Corinthians, First Epistle to the
• Holy Spirit
• Ministry

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 14

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings